Yours Forever
by starbuckmeggie
Summary: A lifetime begins
1. Chapter 1

I clasp my hands in front of me, careful not to wrinkle my dress. I fiddle with my fingers, my engagement ring feeling out of place on my right hand.

I take a couple of deep breaths; nervous isn't the right word for what I'm feeling right now, though there's a little of that. I'm anxious—definitely ready to get this started. I'm a little scared, but I'm a lot happy.

Today is finally _our_ day; Chandler and I getting married and we can start the rest of our lives together.

I feel a rush of excited butterflies swirl in my stomach and I bite the inside of my cheek as I feel happy tears spring to my eyes.

"You okay, Mon?" I hear Phoebe ask, her hand on my shoulder.

I look up from my reverie and smile, my face already starting to hurt from smiling so much. "I'm perfect," I answer.

"They're just seating the last couple of guests," Rachel tells me. "Everything else is ready."

"Okay," I whisper, resuming fiddling with my fingers, trying to find some way to live through these last few minutes. It felt like it took forever to get to right now, in more ways than one. It was all worth it, though. All the sneaking around, the silly misunderstandings, the insecurities, the occasional fights, the fears, the doubts…all of it has led me to this moment, where I get to marry the love of my life. In a few minutes, Chandler will be waiting for me at the altar, and we'll promise ourselves to each other forever.

I feel a tear escape from my eye and Phoebe is there with a tissue immediately, gently dabbing my cheek. "I'm so happy," I say to her and Rachel. I see their eyes fill with tears as well, and simultaneously we reach other for each other, pulling in for a hug, vaguely aware of the photographer snapping pictures around us.

"I'm so happy for you, Monica," Rachel says in to my ear. "You and Chandler are going to be so happy together."

I nod as we give each other another squeeze before breaking apart. Ross walks up to me, a funny little smile on his face. He takes my hands in his, our fingers squeezing together gently for a few moments.

"I still can't believe it," he says, and he looks a little misty himself. "My little sister and my best friend. Who knew?"

I feel my heart flutter—who knew, indeed. Who knew that after being friends with Chandler for almost ten years that I would fall in love with him, that he would be everything I ever needed? Who knew we'd be perfect together?

"You're not still sweaty, are you?" I ask.

He looks thoughtful for a moment, considering. "No, no I'm good."

"Good." I wrap my arms around my brother and pull him close, hugging him tightly. "Thank you for bringing him home all those years ago."

I feel his body shake as he chuckles a little. "Hey, I was just his roommate—you guys did the rest." He holds me tightly for a few moments before we break apart. "Loser," he tells me, his voice strained.

"Doofus," I answer, my lips curling up in response. He turns away from me, staring at a plant, and I know this day is getting to him almost as much as it's getting to me. No matter how much we irritate each other, it's pretty great that my brother cares about me as much as he does. Rachel pats his arm consolingly as she rolls her eyes at me. I shake my head and chuckle.

Suddenly my mother is standing in front of me, her expression unreadable. She looks like she wants to say something, but instead she just kisses my cheek and wraps her arms around me. I revel in her hug, enjoying of the feeling of just being her daughter. She pulls back and smiles at me, her eyes watery, and I struggle not to let myself get teary again. We both look over and see my father standing there, and somehow he looks larger than life. My mother gives my arm a squeeze before going to stand near Ross, waiting.

"My little Har-Monica," he says quietly.

I nod my head, not trusting my voice.

"If he ever hurts you, I'll kill him."

"I know, Daddy," I whisper, tears spilling out of my eyes again.

He put his arms around me and hugs me fiercely. "My little girl is getting married." He pulls back a moment later, and for the first time I can remember, he has tears in his eyes. "Are you happy?"

I nod my head vigorously. "So, _so_ happy."

His thumb gently wipes a tear from my cheek. "Then that's all that matters."

Phoebe and Rachel appear suddenly, Rachel dabbing at my cheeks and Phoebe waving her hands to dry my eyes. I shake my head and chuckle. "I don't think this is in the job description," I tell them.

"Totally is," Rachel confirms, inspecting my face to make sure all is well. "You're good."

I smooth down my dress, and adjust my veil. "Do I look all right?"

"Most beautiful bride I've ever seen," Phoebe says.

I grin, then my heart stops for a moment as I hear the music start.

It's happening. Oh, my God, it's really happening.

Ross pokes his head out of the room for a moment. "Okay, Chandler and his parents just went in. It's time."

I feel my heartbeat triple as the butterflies in my stomach feel like they're trying to beat their way out. Phoebe and Rachel each give me a quick hug before taking Ross's arms, leaving the room. My father holds out his arm to me, my hand only shaking a little as my fingers curl around him. My mother stands on my other side as we make our way in to the hall.

I see my brother and bridesmaids turn to walk down the aisle, and I know that it's almost my turn.

I take a deep breath as we turn the corner, and there he is. I feel my entire body relax, all of my nerves gone. I can actually feel happiness and love radiating out of me as the world around me goes hazy.

All I can see is Chandler, and nothing else matters.

Not my mother complaining about her own mother not being around to see this, and not Chandler making a joke when he comes down to meet me.

Our hands touch and that familiar jolt of electricity courses through me.

I'm about to marry this man.

I'm going to spend forever with him.

My heart starts to pound again, this time because I'm so very ready to start our lives together.


	2. Chapter 2

Now, apparently, I'm impatient.

I spent all last night hiding, trying to figure out a way to get out of marrying Monica, and now I absolutely cannot wait.

I don't know why, but knowing that we're going to have a baby has made me want to marry Monica even more.

I feel my heart flutter a little bit, thinking about Monica holding our baby in her arms. It's a little sooner than we thought, but I think we'll be all right.

My parents fuss about me, smoothing down my jacket, straightening my tie, neither of them saying much of anything, but grinning at me broadly. Neither of them know I went MIA last night, and it's probably for the best; it would probably just lead to the kind of harassment I don't need right now.

I look at the two of the, both all dressed up, and can't help but feel a little ridiculous at my fears of becoming the Bings. I can't base that off of my parents and their failed marriage. My father is gay, for crying out loud—was he supposed to stay with my mother for me? Because that always works out so well? I mean, yeah, my mother's been married a bunch of times, but that's probably just her. Maybe she's like Ross in that she just likes to get married.

But none of that means I can't make it work with Monica. We've made it three years, and those have been pretty good.

Not that three years compares to a lifetime, but still—it's longer than all of our previous relationships combined, I think.

I feel a wave of nerves flood over me again, but this time it feels okay. I'm nervous in the way I was when I asked Monica to marry me, and when I suggested we live together—it's a good scared.

I shove my hands into my pockets and smile. A baby. I can't believe we're going to have a baby. We haven't had sex in a couple of months, either, so she must be pretty far along.

I hear the music start, and some wedding coordinator-type person pokes their head in the room, letting me know it's time.

I smile at my parents and we walk out together. I'm vaguely aware of them talking to me as we head down the aisle, none of the conversation really registering, other than the fact that I really am happy that both of my parents are here today. Monica was right again—go figure.

I don't know who the guy is standing at the altar—I would suspect that Joey is being Joey, which is why he's not here. I want to panic, but as long as it's okay for this guy to marry us, I can't bring myself to get too upset.

I turn and look down the aisle, my hands clasped in front of me, and I feel the world around me slow down.

The next minute will probably be the longest of my life.

I watch as Ross, Rachel, and Phoebe walk toward me, the three of them smiling broadly, and I swear they're walking in slow motion. The aisle stretches out between us and it feels like they're getting farther away instead of closer.

This is insane. I just want to see Monica. Nothing else matters.

I can't wait to see her in her wedding dress. She's been so tight-lipped about it that I don't know what to expect. She was completely out-of-this-world gorgeous in the one she had to return; I don't know that anything could top that.

This is agony. This is absolute torture. All I want is to see the woman who is going to be my wife.

I feel a little shiver run through me at that thought—_my wife_.

I'm going to have a wife.

In a matter of minutes, we're going to be legally bound to each other for eternity.

That thought doesn't scare me at all.

Let's face it; I've been bound to Monica from the beginning. Becoming her lover just sealed the deal.

We really are meant to be; I can feel it in every inch of my being. This day, this moment, was supposed to happen. _We_ were supposed to happen.

All of a sudden, Ross is walking past me—I realize with a start that he's already dropped off the girls and my forever is about to start.

The world slows down even further as I see Jack round the corner.

I can hear my heartbeat in my ears.

My entire body tingles with anticipation, like electricity is coursing through my veins.

Then there she is.

Oh, my God, there she is.

I feel a grin break out across my face even as I stare at her, dumbfounded.

What is this woman doing with me?

I've never seen anything more breathtaking in my entire life.

The world around her goes hazy—I know her parents are walking her down the aisle, but I don't see them.

There's only Monica. My other half.

The smile on her face tells me everything I need to know.

My heart feels like it stops, then starts pounding in triple-time to make up for it.

I'm completely unaware of any time passing; she floats down the aisle toward me, and if I weren't so ready to start our life together, I could live in this moment forever.

Her parents kiss her cheeks, and I step off the dais to her. "You look beautiful." Which is an understatement. Her smile grows wider, and I can't help myself; I point at her dress and ask, "Is this new?"

For a half a second, she looks like the most put-upon person in the world, and I see her trying not to roll her eyes. "Not now," she tells me.

"Okay," I answer as I take her hand, bringing her with me to the altar.

This is it.

We're about to start our life together.

Me, Monica, and our baby..

Could I be any luckier?

*A/N…I'm with all of you guys—Chandler bailing the night before the wedding was a stupid plot twist that didn't fit with the way he was portrayed the entire season. I mean, if they'd showed him having little freak out moments throughout, sure. But he always seemed enthusiastic about the idea that having him run off before the wedding was just horrible. I'm sure there could have been a better way to cause drama.


End file.
